Villain wants to live as a commoner chapter 27

• Screeeech!

A spine-chilling sound, like nails on metal, echoed around us. A sharp pain pierced my ears.

Choi Dokyum, who was closest, staggered and collapsed.

“Aagh!”

Woo Hyungsik and Kim Narae, next to me, also fell unconscious, blood flowing from their ears.

I didn’t take as much damage as the others. My ears hurt, but it was bearable.

The snake’s paralyzing scream ceased. It seemed to have recovered some energy, raising its head menacingly.

Choi Dokyum barely regained his senses and charged at the snake again.

But with blood dripping from his nose and ears, he wasn’t as fierce as before.

I ran towards the snake, shouting.

“Choi Dokyum, duck!”

Perhaps due to his injured ears, Choi Dokyum didn’t respond properly.

There was no time to be considerate.

I telekinetically shoved him from behind, causing him to fall forward.

“Hey, you snake bastard!”

I yelled as I fired my gun at the snake. Bullets without my skill couldn’t penetrate the snake’s hide and bounced off.

But it was enough to divert its attention momentarily.

“Heewon!”

Choi Dokyum turned to me in surprise. I grinned and pulled out a fist-sized bomb from my inventory.

“Take this! Money blast!”

It was a special B-rank mana stone bomb from Lee Shinhae, worth as much as a car! Though I got it for free, using it always made my stomach churn.

Boom!

The bomb did its job. An enormous explosion echoed, and smoke rose.

Taking advantage of the obscured view, I used my telekinesis to twist the snake’s neck.

Already heavily damaged, the snake couldn’t withstand the shock and collapsed.

The snake, twitching on the ground as if electrocuted, suddenly split in half like it had been sliced by a knife.

Translucent fluids splashed out from inside.

“Ah!”

Choi Dokyum, who had been running towards me, was hit by the fluid and screamed.

I reflexively used my skill to shield myself from the fluid.

But I couldn’t do the same for Choi Dokyum.

“Dokyum!”

Choi Dokyum, drenched in the fluid, collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.

I used my skill to catch him as he fell and simultaneously prevented the snake’s fluid from spreading.

The fluid, blocked by an invisible barrier, trembled on the ground without soaking in.

• Seo… Heewon…

A strange voice called my name. Who was it? I instinctively looked around, on guard.

• Why… attack me…

There was only one thing I had been attacking. The snake.

The snake’s eyes were fixed on me. We made eye contact.

“Are you… talking?”

• Why… me…

“Grr…”

Choi Dokyum groaned in pain. There was no time to worry about a talking snake.

I quickly approached Choi Dokyum to check on him.

The areas touched by the venom were turning a faint silver color.

“Dokyum. Choi Dokyum!”

The unconscious Choi Dokyum twisted in pain.

Cold air emanated from him as if dry ice had been placed close to his skin.

It was a poison I’d never encountered before.

I hurriedly took a potion from my inventory and poured it on him.

Thanks to Baek Gunho’s constant worrying, my inventory was stocked with top-grade potions.

Each one was worth millions.

But even after pouring the expensive potion, there was no improvement in Choi Dokyum’s condition.

• Heewon… Shall I… heal him…?

I snapped my head towards the faint voice. The snake that had been staring at me slowly closed its eyes.

• Just… a moment…

The snake’s limp body seemed to shrink, and a smaller snake emerged from within.

Unlike its massive original form, this new snake was only as long as a hand. It slid over the fluid and approached me.

I stepped back, belatedly realizing I’d been watching the snake’s actions too passively.

The snake, receiving my wary gaze, spun in place.

• Heewon…

• Meow.

At that moment, Dust leaped out from the shadows and bit the snake’s neck. It then jumped onto the floating body of Choi Dokyum.

The snake fell from Dust’s mouth and stuck to Choi Dokyum.

“Hey!”

I hurriedly pulled the snake off Choi Dokyum. A disgruntled voice reached my ears.

• I was… going to heal him… Look…

Checking the spot where the snake had touched, I saw it had returned to its original skin color, unlike the other discolored areas.

• Shall I… continue?

Feeling uneasy, I scrutinized the situation before finally placing the snake back on Choi Dokyum’s body.

With no immediate means to heal him and his condition looking critical, I had no choice but to take the risk.

• Shall I continue?

“Hurry up.”

As soon as I spoke, the snake swiftly slithered over Choi Dokyum’s body.

Could something go wrong? My heart pounded nervously the entire time I watched.

But contrary to my anxiety, the snake didn’t do anything strange.

It just diligently crawled over his body, restoring the discolored parts to their original state.

Since the snake was small, it took quite a while for Choi Dokyum’s body to return to normal.

As soon as it finished, I grabbed the snake. It dangled docilely in the air, but its eyes sparkled as it looked at me.

“What are you?”

• Heewon’s friend…

“I don’t have any friends.”

• Heewon is an outcast… so I’m his friend…

“I’m not an outcast, okay?”

I shook the snake lightly and glanced around. The snake’s body, split in two, had dried up quickly as if time had passed rapidly.

If the dungeon doesn’t end despite this state, then this big snake must have a core in this small one, right?

Probably, killing this small snake is the key to getting out of the dungeon.

• Heewon is my friend…

The snake spoke as if it had read my thoughts. Being friends with a monster? That’s ridiculous.

Although it felt unpleasant to kill a talking snake, I used a skill on it. At the very least, I intended to end it in one strike to avoid causing pain.

However.

• We made a contract… now you can’t kill me…

Before the skill could touch the snake, it vanished without a trace.

The snake raised its head triumphantly. I tried to attack it again, but the result was the same.

Can I capture it with a skill but not attack it? I was perplexed. In the end, I had no choice but to ask the snake directly.

“When did I make a contract with you?”

• You asked for help… and I granted it…

“When did I… Are you talking about removing Choi Dokyum’s poison?”

• Yes…

What kind of scam contract is this?

“Bite me.”

The snake blinked slowly.

• I don’t know…

“Where does something like that exist?”

At my words, the snake opened its mouth wide and yawned lazily.

• I… want to sleep…

The snake, having delivered its arbitrary notification, suddenly became translucent.

The monster lost its form, dropped to the ground, and naturally crawled into my shadow.

“What are you doing? Come out!”

Unfortunately, I can’t perfectly control this skill. Monsters often entered on their own, and I had no choice but to cohabitate with them.

Luckily, after some time, the monsters would naturally dry up and die, and the shadow would expel the dead.

Will it be the same with the snake? However, I wasn’t relieved, considering Dust’s past record.

Regardless of my worries, the snake curled up inside my shadow, and Dust that was hovering nearby also slipped inside.

In an instant, two monsters disappeared, leaving me alone. I looked down at my shadow in bewilderment.

Just then, several system windows popped up in succession with a notification sound.

[The skill level of Shadow Nest (B) has increased.

You have acquired Shadow Nest (A).

Shadow Nest (A): You can tame and care for targets inside your shadow. Targets hidden in the shadow are completely concealed.]

What did I do to level up the skill? Did I gain experience by absorbing those creatures?

There was no time to think in detail. The entire dungeon started to shake. Cracks appeared in the sky-like scene above.

[You have successfully conquered the dungeon.

Top Contributor: Seo Heewon

You have received rewards for conquering the dungeon.]

Along with the notification, a rift in the dungeon opened. With a dizzying sensation, my body was sucked back into the real world.